The Promised Second Chapter of the Day. Thanks again Alejandr0
The ingredients for today lay sprawled on the countertop in front of him. Ludwig moved, storing those that rot fast. The special menu for today was something he had thought about for quite some time now. One of the dishes that people should try when they get the chance to visit Japan, Curry.
After checking among the vegetables he stored in the Stasis Storage, Ludwig decided to refill the heap of vegetables first. After all, he was planning on making a big batch of Curry at once. He moved, the equivalent of Carrot, Onion, and Potato lay in front of him, ready to be cut into mouthful chunks.
As his hands moved, his mind drifted. It had been a week since the opening of the restaurant. Yes, the unofficial one where Claire as well as Minato and Kushina found their way into the restaurant. Through that period of time, Ludwig had made a considerable number of dishes, ranging from european dishes to asian dishes. The reception of his cooking wasn't half bad if he had to say it himself. Most of the customers that had graced his restaurant with their presence ordered more on average, baring Claire who fell in love too deeply with the whiskey.
But thanks to Claire's attachment to the whiskey, he decided to not just sell heavy food. The likes of Chips, Yakitori, assortment of Jeon, and Tapas called his menu their permanent home now, boosting his sales even more.
On the customer side, the one who frequented the restaurant the most for the past week was the Red-haired guy who still hadn't given Ludwig his name and his three companions. True to his appearance and his claim on the very first day he came to the restaurant, the guy didn't spare any expense whenever he was in the restaurant. He always spent the minimum of 10 gold coins every time.
In the second place of the most frequent customer throughout the past week was Claire. But unlike her second visit where he started drinking right after lunch, she now always visited the restaurant around dinner time. When Ludwig asked her about the change in her visiting time, Claire told him that the reason she visited around lunch in her second visit was to make sure that her first visit wasn't a dream. Something that kept her mind busy, so much that she couldn't focus at all on her work.
In third place was Shuna and Benimaru. Yes, the two Kijins, not their lord. The last time Ludwig saw the slime was 4 days ago. Since then, he hadn't once stepped into the restaurant again. When he asked the Kijins about it, they told him that Rimuru was indisposed.
Ludwig didn't press for more answers as he heard that, after all, through his conversation with RImuru, he had gathered enough information regarding the timeline in Rimuru's world. He's probably sleeping in his quarter after fainting due to naming so many monsters that suddenly joined the Jura Forest Alliance.
And the last place on the leaderboard fell to Minato and Kushina. The reason for their absence was simply hard to determine since Ludwig hadn't got the chance to talk with them much. But if what he saw in Minato's eyes that night was true, then there's a high chance he was sent into the frontline.
In the meantime, Kushina…
Well, without Minato in Konoha, he's sure that the Hokage used so many reasons to prevent her from coming to the restaurant. After all, everyone who read or watched Naruto knew just how strict Konoha was when it came to protecting their Jinchuriki, twisted as it might be.
Why can Ludwig be so sure that it was the Hokage's doing, you ask? It's because he could feel the presence of people observing his restaurant from the shadows in Konoha. The reason they knew about the restaurant was easy to figure out: Minato.
He was such a good and dutiful guy, there's no chance he wouldn't report something as weird as this restaurant to the Hokage. After all, even though it's called a restaurant, it could become a gateway for people from another world to invade Konoha. An unknown factor that could destabilise Konoha.
Even so, Ludwig wasn't worried at all. If they dared to step into his restaurant with ill intention, they would be buried there and then. Even if it's the Hokage himself who came through the door.
Ludwig's hand stopped moving as the smell of cooked beef and vegetables filled the quiet kitchen. He reached towards the black and gold packets that had an image of curry plastered on their surface and tore it open.
The smell of curry blocks joined the symphony of aroma in the kitchen, and then he dropped them into the big pot where the other ingredients were cooked. He stirred the pot, at the same time, he took some Mana away from the runes beneath the pot. Once the once clear broth was now brownish, Ludwig continued to prepare the ingredients he had brought from the market.
The preparation was finally done 2 hours later, and Ludwig quickly moved towards his seat behind the bar and willed the restaurant to open. After popping out a bottle of cola to reward himself from completing the long process, he took the book he had been reading for the past week and continued on where he stopped yesterday.
He still had so many pages left for him. Thankfully, his speed should pick up soon as he wouldn't need to do the long preparation again anytime soon. The amount he had done today should be enough for a week of operation.
As Ludwig dived deeper and deeper into the book and the sun started to fall slightly from its peak position, the first customer of the day finally came. But when he saw nothing even after looking towards the door, Ludwig could only chuckle. He then rose to his feet and opened his mouth, "Welcome to Checkpoint."
What came after his greeting was a series of two distinctive meows. Ludwig smiled towards the grey and red cats, and then they hopped into the bar seat. Ludwig went to the kitchen and took three small metal bowls. Yes three. The cats weren't the only one who came, the invisible little dragon was also there.
Ludwig put the three bowls on the bar table and poured some milk into it after pulling the carton with a flick of a finger. "Your food will come soon, please wait a little bit."
"Meow!" The red cat meowed before the three bowls started to move. Ludwig just let them be and went back to the kitchen. He took a portion of fried chicken from the static cabinet and put it into the boiling oil in the pan. While waiting for it to be cooked, he took two large fillets of fish and put it into a shorter pan sizzling with butter.
Once he finished coating the fried chicken with the sauce and plating it, he sent the three dishes into the three creatures. The fried chicken for the little dragon, and big pan seared fish for the cats. "Enjoy."
With another series of meowing, the three creatures started to gulp down the food. Ludwig took this chance to refill the bowls with water before sitting back down. But rather than opening the book he had been reading, he just watched the three.
It could be said that the three were the reason why his sales were quite good. The first time they came into the restaurant without the red-haired man was three days ago. At first, Ludwig thought the cats would finally show him their human form since words were needed to order the food. However, the system rained on his parade. It told him what they wanted to eat while Ludwig could only hear 'Meow, meow, meow.' Not only that, the system even told Ludwig what the little dragon wanted!
Although reluctant, Ludwig still made their order. After all, after knowing what he wanted, he couldn't bear to act oblivious about it. From that day onwards, they had been visiting the restaurant everyday. But that's not the end. They would return once again around dinner, but at that time, with the red-haired man in tow.
Once the three creatures licked even the water bowl clean, the red cats meowed at him. However, unlike before when the system translated it to him, the system gave him nothing right now.
"What do you want, Little One?" Ludwig stood and moved his head closer to the red cat.
"Meow, meow, meow, meow!" The red cat said again, but just like before, nothing came.
"I can't understand you." Ludwig explained, and that made the cats deflated.
But before long, the two cats perked up and looked at the empty space on their right. Their cute faces became serious, and their eyes squinted. Before long they let out a long 'Meow.' Ludwig could feel the little dragon floating into the air at that moment, it then moved closer towards the door before opening it and leaving the restaurant.
As Ludwig ruminated on what the dragon's action might mean, the two cats jumped into the separator between their part of the bar and his station before curling there.
"Oh, you guys are staying here?" Ludwig opened his mouth, tone amused.
"Meow!" The cats meowed in unison.
"Make yourself comfortable then, call me if you guys need anything." Ludwig chuckled before taking the empty plates and bowl on the bar table and brought it to the sink. After cleaning them and putting them in the drying rack, Ludwig went back to his heat, books back opened.
The sound of the cats' soft breathing accompanied him, blending perfectly with the stillness of the restaurant. And as the sun finally went from the sky, the two cats woke up from their slumber.
"Meow!" The grey cat meowed weakly, seemingly still drowsy.
When the meaning of that meow entered his brain, Ludwig moved. Ludwig pulled the carton of milk from the refrigerator as well as two bowls with a flick of wrist. But before he could put it into the bar table, the two cats jumped down. Not towards their side of the bar, but to his.
Ludwig's brows went up at their action. But then, he smiled and moved his hands towards the grey cats. "You two little rascals!" Ludwig willed the bowl to land in front of him, and then, white liquid filled it to the brim.
The two cats drank from the bowl, but unlike earlier, they were drinking it slowly. Before long, the system buzzed in his mind. But this time, not because of the cats. A returning customer was coming.
When the door opened, the two Kijins that had frequented his restaurant as well as the purple Kijin walked in. However, in the purple Kijin's embrace, there was a blue glob that looked slightly melted.
"Welcome to Checkpoint." Ludwig greeted them. Then, his eyes moved towards Rimuru. "It's nice to see you again, Rimuru."
"It's nice to see you again too, but first food. I am famished." Rimuru said, no energy could be felt from his voice.
"Sure." Ludwig chuckled, from the corner of his eyes, he could see the two cats peeking towards the newcomers. "Will curry rice and chicken katsu be good enough for you?"
"Double it. I feel like I can eat the whole mountain right now." Rimuru added.
"Sure." Ludwig said before looking at the Kijins. "What about you guys?"
"I want this curry rice and chicken katsu too." Benimaru said calmly.
"Me too." Then, both Shuna and Shion seconded his choice.
"Coming right up." Ludwig said to no one particular and plunged himself to the process of making the food into completion. In the meantime, his senses were telling him that the two little rascals had jumped towards the newcomers, acting cute in front of them. Ludwig just smiled at their action, then he tuned everything out and focused on making the big batch of chicken katsu.